Summary:  Matcha is considered as one of the most powerful Superfoods. Edit highlights her first expriences with Matcha and explains the 5 reasons why it should be added to your Daily Diet.

5 Reasons to add Matcha to your Daily Diet

Author: Edit Ford

Reading time: 15 minutes

It’s Matcha Time! …Or not?

It’s Matcha Time! …Or not? I am a devoted tea drinker; I love my tea black and strong, without sugar, or lemon and preferably slap a tea cozy on the pot to keep it hot, for as long as it lasts! Yeah! I’ve got to do this properly every year exactly for two weeks when visiting relatives in England. Love. Every. Minute. Of. It! And in the remaining 50 weeks I am surrounded by people who know very little about tea cozies and about the perfect steeping time of black tea.

I live in Shanghai where everything is about Green Tea. In fairness I do love green tea too, but I don’t get carried away with the whole Green Tea themed food culture that is happening here. I love Asian desserts but Green Tea ice cream, Croissant filled with Matcha cream, Matcha cheesecake doesn’t appeal to me. I even avoid the complementary Matcha pudding after my well-loved Japanese lunches. For the longest time I didn’t even know what Matcha really meant. I just assumed it was a fancy way to call Green Tea.

The day I met my Matcha

One day my Japanese friend Yuka just returned from Tokyo and brought me a beautifully wrapped box of Matcha. I was polite and made all the right noises at the right times (mostly admired the truly stunning packaging). Took the tea box home assuming that it contained dried leaves or at best those cute, triangle-shaped tea filters that I could use to impress my guests. I opened the box and to my surprise it was filled with green powder. It wasn’t quite what I expected but as Japanese do everything in such remarkable details; there was a little cartoon on the box teaching me how to prepare my first Matcha.

Driven by curiosity I’ve boiled a pot of water and I put a few spoons of the green powder in to my mug. I sipped the first cup in front of my computer and within 15 minutes I felt supercharged and happy. Wow! I got my job done like I usually do after I had a double shot of espresso. I felt like someone put an extra battery in to my back and I loved the blissful and light feeling of it.

Different kind of caffeine

Normally I am not great with caffeine and I was sure I could expect some headaches and dizziness after such caffeine high. I waited and waited, but it never came. How good that felt! After such an experience I opened my life to Matcha. Not only read through websites, but also made met Yuka my friend again and I asked about a million questions about my new, favorite drink. This is what I learnt:

Matcha originates from the highest quality of young Camellia Sinensis tea leaves. After it is stemmed, and steamed, it is pulverized in to fine powder. The powder is stored in airtight containers, away from light in order to reduce oxidation, preserve its antioxidant properties and its bright green color. So if your Matcha powder looks brownish, it means it was left out on the air and it is probably past its best days….

1. Improves Concentration and induces Happiness

It contains L-Theanine Amino Acid that promotes the production of Alpha waves in the brain and stimulates relaxation without drowsiness. A useful side effect of L-Theanine is its serotonin and dopamine production. These two compounds promote better concentration, improve memory and function as mood enhancer.

2. Boosts Energy, Endurance and Weight Loss

The increased endurance and the abundance of energy from drinking Matcha Green Tea lasts up to 5-6 hours without the side effects of edginess and hypertension that is caused by some of the other caffeinated drinks. Consuming Green Tea increases thermogenesis (how fast and how much calories we burn) from 8-11% to 35-45%. Exercising immediately after drinking Matcha Green Tea possibly results in burning 25% more fat during exercise.

3. Contains Healthy Fiber

Matcha is an easily digestible, high-quality fiber source, supports digestive regularity and helps to control cholesterol levels and blood sugar.

4. Detoxification, Cholesterol Reduction

Matcha is a powerful detoxifier and it is able to naturally eliminate chemical toxins from our body. Researchers are not completely clear on how Matcha has such positive effect on our cholesterol, however various studies show that people who drink Match on a regular basis have much higher levels of HDL (healthy cholesterol) and lower levels of LDL (bad) cholesterol. Matcha drinkers are 10% less likely to develop heart disease than those who don’t drink it.

5. Increased Metabolism, Stronger Immune System

Without the possible side effects of caffeine such as high blood pressure and increased heart rate, Matcha Green Tea helps to increase metabolism. Daily one cup of Matcha Green Tea provides substantial quantities of Potassium, Vitamins A & C, Iron, Protein, and Calcium. Furthermore, just the tea is rich in Vitamins A and C, iron, potassium, and calcium, that all strengthens the body’s defense system. The catechins in Matcha have antibiotic properties, while Matcha also helps to fight various forms of arthritis. The polyphenols found in the tea have strong anti-inflammatory properties, protect cartilage and reduce inflammation.

6. Antioxidant Super Power

During the last three weeks before the harvest Camellia Sinensis are kept covered from sunlight. This helps to increase the chlorophyll production in the new growth of the plants. The result is high levels of chlorophyll in Matcha Green Tea, which not only gives its strong green color but also makes it a powerful antioxidant. Matcha’s antioxidants act as natural antibiotics and give strong support to our immune systems. Antioxidants help our bodies to fight aging, life-threatening diseases and UV radiation. One cup of Matcha Green Tea has high amounts of antioxidants and has high scores by the ORAC (Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity) method.

Matcha contains catechins and Epigallocatechin Gallate (EGCG). We know EGCG for their incredible anti-cancer properties.

Hard to believe but Matcha has so much more antioxidant than some of the most obvious antioxidant-rich foods:

• 137 times that of black tea
• 61 times that of Spinach
• 17 times that of Wild Blueberries
• 7 times that of Dark Chocolate
• 6 times that of Goji Berries

Apart from being a pretty tasty drink, it is super clear that Matcha Green Tea does amazing stuff to our body. I drink if before I start to work, after lunch when I am about to keel over my computer and before I start my session at the gym!